drug testing

• aspirin 


  used as a painkiller and blood thinner

  made from willow bark
• quinine 


  used for muscle cramps and malaria

  made from cinchona bark
• morphine and codeine


  used as a painkiller (after surgery)

  made from opium poppy
• penicillin 


  treat infections caused by bacteria

  made from isolated fungi (mould)
• previous way of drug testing

  find a useful ingredient

  test drug on small group of patients

  test on large amount of patients and increase dosage

  license the drug and record results
• modern day drug testing

  Identify useful substance and extract

  test on animals and in the lab to asses safety and effectiveness

  test on a small group of healthy volunteers for side effects

  test on small group of volunteers with disease

  do a double blind trial

  after being licence trials continue for more data and safety
• what is a double blind trail

  2 large groups of patients are used to test a drug

  one group is given the drug the other is given a placebo

  neither the doctors nor the patients know which is the real drug

  is used to prevent bias
• differences between modern day and withering's drug testing

  withering did not extract active ingredient

  withering did not have safety tests

  withering did not check for side effects

  withering did not check for bias